Built in 1979, the two-story, 47,404-square-foot hotel sits on 2.2 acres at the northeast corner of South Camilla Street and Union Avenue near the latter’s intersection with Interstate 240. The Shelby County Assessor of Property’s 2013 appraisal was $1.8 million.

At the time, the property had been called Camilla Inn and, before that, was branded as a La Quinta Inn and Red Roof Memphis Downtown.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Daily News staff

Elvis Presley Enterprises Files Permit for Studio Near Graceland

Elvis Presley Enterprises has filed a $670,000 permit application with the city-county Office of Construction Code Enforcement to build a new studio building on land north of Graceland.

The permit, which lists Flintco Inc. as the general contractor, comes about four months after New York-based Authentic Brands Group – the company that owns Elvis Presley’s intellectual property and the rights to operate Graceland – announced plans for upgrades around the mansion.

The property at 3674 Elvis Presley Blvd., which served as a car lot in the past, is among several parcels Elvis Presley Enterprises bought in 2006, just before the onset of the national economic downturn.

Several apartment complexes on both sides of Elvis Presley Boulevard were also purchased and the units later demolished as CKX Inc., which at that time owned 85 percent of EPE, announced plans for a $250 million overhaul that would leave the mansion intact but create a resort-style area of entertainment, hotels and restaurants around it.

That plan stalled, and CKX sold its majority ownership of Elvis Presley Enterprises to Apollo Global Management, which rebranded its efforts as CORE Media.

Authentic Brands Group bought the assets in November, and executives immediately announced general plans for the area around the mansion similar to the CKX plan. The scale of the plan still isn’t known, with Authentic Brands executives saying they could release more details in August.

– Bill Dries

Limited Tickets Available for NCAA Regional

A limited number of all-session tickets for the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball South Regional in Memphis have been made available to the public. Tickets are $160 and can be purchased at www.ncaa.com/mbbtickets.

Tickets were made available to the general public when teams who advanced to the South Regional did not use their entire team pool allotment. Session packages include tickets to Thursday, March 27, semifinal matchups and Saturday, March 29, regional final. The team that wins the regional final will advance to the NCAA Men’s Final Four in North Texas.

The University of Dayton will play Stanford University at 6:15 p.m. in Thursday’s regional semifinal at FedExForum, followed by the University of Florida versus UCLA 30 minutes later. CBS has not yet announced the time of Saturday’s regional final game.

– Don Wade

Bank of Bartlett Launches New Website

Bank of Bartlett has launched a new website at bankofbarlett.com that aims to provide a seamless and responsive banking experience across smartphones, tablets and computers.

New features including online applications for opening an account, educational modules that explain things such as the differences in mortgage loans, and a glossary with simple definitions of mortgage terminology. The site also provides access to personal accounts, up-to-date interest rates and bank branch information, among other things.

– Andy Meek

Single Tickets Sold Out for Redbirds-Cardinals

The Memphis Redbirds have announced that individual tickets for the St. Louis Cardinals Exhibition Game on Friday, March 28, at AutoZone Park are now sold out.

A limited number of Exclusive VIP packages remain available by calling 722-0257.

And with the restructuring of the Shelby County Schools board to nine members effective with the August elections, two incumbent board members, Chris Caldwell and Billy Orgel, in Districts 1 and 8 respectively, filed for re-election Monday.

Seven of the nine school board positions are on the August ballot as nonpartisan elections. The District 2 and 4 seats are up for election in two years.

– Bill Dries

Watered-Down Meth Bill Advancing in Tenn. House

A watered-down version of Gov. Bill Haslam's anti-meth legislation is advancing in the House, though significant differences remain with the Senate bill.

The House Criminal Justice Committee on Wednesday advanced the measure that would set an annual cap of 150 days' worth of allergy and cold medicines like Sudafed that could be bought without prescription. That's double the amount envisioned under Haslam's previous proposal.

Several members of the committee said they worry about enacting legislation that could hurt the ability of law-abiding citizens to obtain the medications they need without going through a doctor.

The Senate has advanced a bill with the tighter restrictions, and House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick said it could require a conference committee between the two chambers to reconcile their differences.

– The Associated Press

Revenue Drops at River Casinos

Mississippi Gulf Coast casinos won a bit more from gamblers in February but that increase couldn't overcome bigger revenue declines at casinos along the Mississippi River.

Mississippi Department of Revenue figures show statewide casino revenue to $182 million in February, down fell 3 percent from 2013's second month.

Revenue has fallen in 18 of the last 20 months.

The 12 coastal casinos won $89.4 million, up less than 1 percent from February 2013. The 18 river casinos won $93 million, down 6 percent from a year earlier.

The numbers exclude Choctaw Indian casinos, which aren't required to report winnings to the state.